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Employee Access Resource

Shared Files and Permissions Guide for Small Businesses

Shared files help teams work together, but unmanaged sharing can expose sensitive business information or create confusion over who owns important documents.

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Why this matters

Small businesses often create shared folders quickly and keep adding people. Over time, old employees, vendors, external links, and unclear ownership make the file system harder to trust.

Use this resource when

  • Your team uses Google Drive, OneDrive, SharePoint, or shared folders.
  • Employees are not sure where official documents live.
  • External sharing has not been reviewed.
  • Old employees or vendors may still have file access.

What to review

  • Top-level folders and shared drives.
  • Folder owners and business owners.
  • External links and public sharing.
  • Former employee access.
  • Vendor and contractor access.
  • Sensitive files such as payroll, finance, human resources, and customer information.
Step by step

Practical checklist

  1. List the main shared folders or shared drives.
  2. Identify the business owner for each area.
  3. Review who has access at the top level.
  4. Check for external links and public sharing.
  5. Remove former employees and old vendors.
  6. Create a naming and ownership standard for future folders.
Avoid these issues

Common mistakes

  • Using personal drives for business documents.
  • Sharing folders with anyone who has the link.
  • Keeping old employees as folder owners.
  • Creating duplicate folders for the same purpose.
  • Not reviewing permissions after role changes.

Need help turning this into a working process?

J3 Systems Group can help small businesses clean up shared folders, review permissions, and document file ownership.

Schedule a consultation

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